Table mounted tools, such as table saws, are often used for cutting large material items, such as large sheets of plywood and the like. It is imperative when using such power tools, that the material be properly supported in order to maintain the material in contact with, for example, the saw blade. As such, various arrangements are used to support the material as it is progressively moved in toward the saw blade, i.e., as the material is fed into the cutting region.
One often used method for supporting such materials is to erect one or more saw-horses at the "feed" end of the saw table. Those that have used such an arrangement realize that the saw-horses may not remain in place as the material is progressively fed into the cutting area. That is, the saw-horses may not remain stable during the cutting operation.
A variety of table extensions have been used that essentially clamp to the top of the saw table. While these extensions provide sufficient support for the material, they can be cumbersome, time consuming or difficult to use. The above-noted arrangements are, of course, preferable to merely allowing the material to cantilever or hang over the edge of the saw table and preferable to having an assistant support the material as it is feed into the cutting region.
One known table extension includes a pair of side rails that are slidingly received along the edges of the table top. An extension portion is positioned between the sliding rails and slides forward and rearward relative to the saw blade. The position of the extension is maintained fixed relative to the table top by a plurality of screw-like clamping arrangements positioned on the rails and/or table top. Although this arrangement works quite well to secure the extension portion of the top in position relative to the saw table top, the plurality of screw-like clamps requires movement around the table to secure the extension in a desired position. This can become particularly time consuming when it is necessary to frequently adjust the position of the extension.
Accordingly, there exists the need for a table top extension locking arrangement that securely fixes the extension in a desired position and is readily easy to use. Preferably, such a locking arrangement requires a single actuation to lock the extension at any of a variety of locations relative to the table saw top.